Help on finding when a GAD-50 was made

[Fender124C41]

Hello. Can somebody help me find the manufacturing dates for a couple of GAD-50 guitars I'm looking to buy? First, when were the GAD-50s made? All I know is they were made overseas. I've owned some USA-made Guilds back in the 1970s, a D-25 and a D-55 but those are way out of my current price range. So I'm turning to the imports. I've read that the actual serial number or other dating tool is inside the guitar and something that may be hard to find. These guitars are sold online so I can't go an look at them myself and I don't expect the salesman to take the time to do a thorough inspection. Thanks as any help will be appreciated.

 

[adorshki]

Hi Fender, welcome aboard!
See post #'s 16 &17 here:
https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/westerly-collection-serial-number-decoder.186645/

 

[Fender124C41]

Hi Fender, welcome aboard!
See post #'s 16 &17 here:
https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/westerly-collection-serial-number-decoder.186645/

Thanks. I read the link and it said some had a 10-digit number with the first two digits representing the year. I called a store and the rep said the number started with 19 ... which would be impossible because I thought the GAD guitars were made from 2004-2011. Maybe he misread the "0" as a "9" ... but that's what he told me. He also gave me the number on the inner label which I know doesn't tell me the year of production.

 

[SFIV1967]

Here is the link for the older GAD models:

Can anyone help me figure out what model of Guild guitar this is?

I know I'm new to this forum, so if you can help out a newbie, I'd really appreciate it. And I checked the .pdf at Guild's website, but couldn't match up the Serial Number. Here's my situation... I know a woman who is trying to sell her father's used Guild guitar. He passed away recently...

letstalkguild.com

Ralf

 

[SFIV1967]

I called a store and the rep said the number started with 19 ... which would be impossible

Or he misread 13 for 19 maybe? We would really need to see a picture of the guitar to narrow down the years. The GADs were different from 2004 to 2011 and 2012 to 2014.

Sept 2013:


A zero is very obvious:
May 2005:


Ralf

 

[Fender124C41]

Here is the link for the older GAD models:

Can anyone help me figure out what model of Guild guitar this is?

I know I'm new to this forum, so if you can help out a newbie, I'd really appreciate it. And I checked the .pdf at Guild's website, but couldn't match up the Serial Number. Here's my situation... I know a woman who is trying to sell her father's used Guild guitar. He passed away recently...

letstalkguild.com

Ralf

again thanks but my other post showed the salesman said the first two numbers were 19 ... which made it a 2019 production which is impossible.

 

[Fender124C41]

Or he misread 13 for 19 maybe? We would really need to see a picture of the guitar to narrow down the years. The GADs were different from 2004 to 2011 and 2012 to 2014.



Ralf

I don't think he is going to send me a picture. What was the difference between the two time periods? I didn't know they were made later than 2011 either.

 

[SFIV1967]

What was the difference between the two time periods? I didn't know they were made later than 2011 either.

The changes were to many things on the guitars. Most obvious are the 3 digit model numbers. Many regard the first version as the "better" versions.

All-New Guild Acoustic Design Series Introduced | Guild Guitars

Guild is proud to announce the debut of its all-new GAD series (Guild Acoustic Design) guitars, which introduces new model types and continues a tradition of acoustic excellence by offering the latest in modern, performance-driven features and exceptional value. GAD series guitars feature...

guildguitars.com

Only in 2014 those were discontinued and replaced by the so called "Westerly Collection" in 2015:

Guild Guitars Unveils the Westerly Collection

A new series of all solid acoustic guitars that pays homage to Guild's Westerly, Rhode Island era.

www.premierguitar.com

Ralf

 

[SFIV1967]

again thanks but my other post showed the salesman said the first two numbers were 19 ... which made it a 2019 production which is impossible.

Or he only looked at the label and found the 19 there behind the GAD- ?
Like this "GAD-17306", which is not a date.



Ralf

 

[Fender124C41]

The changes were to many things on the guitars. Most obvious are the 3 digit model numbers. Many regard the fisrt version as the "better" versions.

All-New Guild Acoustic Design Series Introduced | Guild Guitars

Guild is proud to announce the debut of its all-new GAD series (Guild Acoustic Design) guitars, which introduces new model types and continues a tradition of acoustic excellence by offering the latest in modern, performance-driven features and exceptional value. GAD series guitars feature...

guildguitars.com

Only in 2014 those were discontinued and replaced by the so called "Westerly Collection" in 2015:

Guild Guitars Unveils the Westerly Collection

A new series of all solid acoustic guitars that pays homage to Guild's Westerly, Rhode Island era.

www.premierguitar.com

Ralf

Thanks. Sort of sounds like the Epiphone Masterbilts. They were produced and then stopped and then reintroduced a few years later and I think the earlier series (such as mine) were the better instruments.

 

[Fender124C41]

Or he only looked at the label and found the 19 there behind the GAD- ?
Like this "GAD-17306", which is not a date.



Ralf

No he looked at the heel. He also gave me the listing on the paper which just said GAD-50 and a three-digit number.

 

[SFIV1967]

He also gave me the listing on the paper which just said GAD-50 and a three-digit number.

A three digit number? Not possible I'd say. The Serial Number had always 5 digits with leading zeros if smaller. Well, maybe a very early GAD was "GAD-00xxx" where xxx would be a 3 digit number and he didn't tell the 3 zeros.



All pure speculation without pictures.

Ralf

 

[Fender124C41]

A three digit number? Not possible I'd say. The Serial Number had always 5 digits with leading zeros if smaller. Well, maybe a very early GAD was "GAD-00xxx" where xxx would be a 3 digit number and he didn't tell the 3 zeros.



All pure speculation without pictures.

Ralf

Again he gave me the 10-digit number on the heel as well as what was written on the inner paper label. I'm going with the 10-digit number but that lone "9" is just not correct.

 

[fronobulax]

There are people who refer to all of the made in China Guilds as "GADs". That is not correct because of changes over the years. But the error can lead to serial numbers that do not make sense. So are these instruments GADs because someone knows they are made in China or because they actually have a label that includes "GAD" in the model number?

 

[Fender124C41]

There are people who refer to all of the made in China Guilds as "GADs". That is not correct because of changes over the years. But the error can lead to serial numbers that do not make sense. So are these instruments GADs because someone knows they are made in China or because they actually have a label that includes "GAD" in the model number?

well maybe I just will pass up these GAD-50s and go to my backup plan ... a 2006 (verifiable) Alvarez MD90 with a cutaway and a pickup with Englemann over rosewood. And about $50 cheaper and supposedly in better overall condition. I've had very good luck with Alvarez guitars as I own three and owned two in the past. Only one had a problem ( a lifting bridge). As they said a guitar in the hand is better than a bird in the bush. Or something like that.

I still have that other GAD-50 to check into but this is giving me problems. I do thank everybody here for their comments. But I'm really uncertain what this guitar is now.

 

[fronobulax]

well maybe I just will pass up these GAD-50s and go to my backup plan ... a 2006 (verifiable) Alvarez MD90 with a cutaway and a pickup with Englemann over rosewood. And about $50 cheaper and supposedly in better overall condition. I've had very good luck with Alvarez guitars as I own three and owned two in the past. Only one had a problem ( a lifting bridge). As they said a guitar in the hand is better than a bird in the bush. Or something like that.

I still have that other GAD-50 to check into but this is giving me problems. I do thank everybody here for their comments. But I'm really uncertain what this guitar is now.

I feel like you might be giving up too soon but the quality of our answers is tempered by the quality of the input. A picture of a label would resolve a lot of ambiguity and speculation but if that is too much for the seller...
I will note that the earlier made in China Guilds are held in slightly higher esteem compared to later iterations.

 

[Fender124C41]

Bit of an update:
That Alvarez MD-90CE sold so ...
I did check on one GAD-50 and the serial number showed it was made in 2008 IIRC. It has also been sold.
I checked on another GAD-50 and the seller said the shop discovered it had a defect so the price was dropped about 30 percent and was offered on a "no returns" basis. I did not want to buy a guitar online that way. It also has been sold, I imagine to somebody locally.
That GAD-50 with the "impossible" serial number is still available. I contacted the seller who looked at the number again and said it appears to be as he said, beginning with "19" but he concluded it may be instead "13" or "18" or "10" because he said the numerals were so faded out.
So that now is my only option in my price range. Actually the more I thought about it I was drawn to the Alvarez MD-90 because it has an Englemann spruce top which may suit my style of playing better. I don't play fingerstyle but I'm a soft player and I appreciate the nuances of sounds. On the other side of the sonic spectrum, I played a Recording King RD-328 that has an Adirondack spruce top. It was very loud but a little harsh. I also understand Adi tops take the longest time to break in and mellow out a bit. When I was going to acoustic jams, however, I would have loved to have had a loud guitar because, as I think I said, my mid-70s D-55 I thought was overbuilt and it was a very quiet guitar, lovely at low volumes but just not made for mid-sized or larger jams.

I do welcome any other suggestions. Maybe there is some other guitar with the specs and the price that would be OK for me.